MALMO, SWEDEN (VIP-Booking) – Ten years following its inaugural event, Big Slap Festival is ceasing operations.
The festival was acquired by All Things Live in 2020 and hosted the acclaimed EDM artist Swedish House Mafia just last summer in Malmö, drawing substantial crowds. Still, now the promoters have decided to conclude the festival.
Founder Ali Eftekhari told Swedish Newspaper Sydsvenskan, “Big Slap has been driven forward by the fact that we wanted to develop the festival to new levels. The last two years with Justin Bieber and Swedish House Mafia have made us feel that we have reached a maximum limit for how we can develop the festival.”
Eftekhari also pointed out that global circumstances, including conflicts and elevated interest rates, have resulted in fewer artists touring this upcoming summer. “We do not think 2024 is a good year for such large festivals in either Sweden or the world. Most major festivals are struggling now”, he says.
Despite the cessation of Big Slap, plans are underway for two new festivals in Skåne by the summer of 2024, focusing on Swedish talents. One will take place in Malmö in July at Nyhamnen, the same venue as Big Slap’s last two editions. The second is scheduled for a two-day event in May in Lund, according to Eftekhari’s statements to Sydsvenskan.
